A Shift in Reality
by Settiai
Summary: All it took to change the universe was a single lucky movement. :: Janet/Sam


Title: A Shift in Reality

Author: Settiai

Disclaimer: "Stargate SG-1" and other related characters belong to their copyright holders. No infringement is intended. This story, such as it is, was written as a sign of respect and love for the characters, the series, and their creator. I claim no ownership of the aforementioned series and characters.

Rating: PG

Summary: All it took to change the universe was a single lucky movement.

Feedback: Comments and helpful criticisms are **always** appreciated.

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"_Okay, the theory is that there are an infinite number of alternate realities. Some of them are very different, and some are almost identical."_

_Samantha Carter, "There But For the Grace of God"_

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The moment she stepped into the infirmary, Sam felt herself begin to relax. She had been more than a little tense ever since she had practically had a breakdown in front of Emmett and his camera crew. Looking back, she still couldn't believe that she had actually been crying … no more than she could believe how close she had come to punching the man right there in the hallway.

Shaking her head a bit, Sam tried to push away both that memory and the time she had just spent in debriefing. As she made her way over to the curtained-off bed in the corner of the room, she forced herself to smile, even though she knew it probably seemed at least somewhat artificial.

Sam pushed through the curtains, and she couldn't help but let out a relieved sigh as she dropped down in one of the infirmary's chairs. "How are you feeling?"

Janet managed to give her a wry grin. "Like I took a staff blast to the shoulder," she said, her voice light despite the pain Sam could hear in it. "I'd tell you that I've felt worse…."

"…but that would be a lie," Sam said, her smile fading a bit as she finished the other woman's sentence. She reached out and gently brushed a stray hair out of Janet's face, biting her lip as she did so. "If you hadn't moved when you did, that blast would have caught you right in the chest."

"Then I guess I was lucky," Janet said softly.

Sam nodded. "Very lucky," she said seriously. "Daniel said … he told us what happened, during the debriefing. He thought for a second that the blast had actually hit you in the chest, you know."

Janet managed another weak smile. "Then I should probably expect him to show up for another visit?" she asked teasingly. "He keeps claiming that he's here to visit the colonel and he only keeps popping in to visit me because Jack's not awake yet."

Sam nodded, but she didn't smile. "He'll probably be back," she said, still in a serious tone. "I got the impression that it really shook him, seeing you get hit."

At that, Janet frowned. "It shouldn't be any different than when you, or Teal'c, or Colonel O'Neill gets injured off world," she said. "Just because I don't leave the SGC as much doesn't mean I'm not still in the military. I think people tend to forget that…." She trailed off when she noticed the slight smile tugging at the corner's of Sam's mouth. "What?"

"It shouldn't be any different than when the colonel, Teal'c, or I are injured off world?" Sam repeated, raising an eyebrow. "How many times have you had to threaten to sedate him if he didn't go back to his quarters and get some rest when one of us was hurt?"

Janet started to reply, but she ended up shooting Sam a rather sheepish look. "Point taken," she said with a weak laugh.

Although she was still smiling a bit, Sam's face grew serious again. "He wasn't the only one who was worried," she said softly. "And he definitely wasn't the only one who was a little shaken up about you getting hurt."

"Sam," Janet said softly, reaching out to gently squeeze the other woman's hand. "I'm going to be fine."

Biting her lip a bit, Sam stared at her. "I know," she said after a few seconds.

Without saying another word, she carefully leaned in and kissed Janet's forehead. Then she moved her lips downward just a bit so that they met Janet's for just an instant.

As she pulled away, Janet gave her an amused look. "I'm not going to break, you know," she said lightly. "It's my shoulder that's hurt, not my lips."

Smiling in amusement, Sam just shook her head. It was obvious that she had taken the hint, though, since she also leaned back in and kissed Janet with much less caution.

"Hey Janet, I thought I'd stop by for just a … oh."

Sam pulled away with a startled gasp when she heard Daniel's familiar voice, and it was obvious from Janet's muffled groan that she had started a little as well. Daniel, in the meantime, quickly stepped all the way through the curtain, letting it close behind him. His face was bright red, and he looked like he'd like to do nothing more than sink right into the floor.

"Maybe I should go," he suggested weakly, gesturing toward the door on the other side of the curtain. "I didn't mean to disturb anything, and I'm pretty sure that Jack … isn't awake, but I could probably go find Teal'c, and we could…."

"Daniel, you're rambling," Janet said, cutting him off mid-sentence. "And I think you're going to hurt your hands if you don't stop waving them around like that."

Janet and Sam shared a quick look before they both glanced back over at him. "We can explain this," Sam said, well aware from the slight smirk Janet was wearing that her own face was probably just as red as Daniel's.

Daniel frowned as he let his hands drop down to his side. "Explain?" he repeated slowly. He stared at the two women for a moment, a slightly confused look on his face, before his eyes widened. "Oh!"

His blush quickly began to fade. "Not military, remember?" he said, his formerly flustered look fading into an amused one. "Besides, you don't have anything to explain. It's not like we hadn't noticed that…."

Daniel trailed off again when he saw the looks on their faces. "Let's pretend I didn't just say that."

Sam just raised an eyebrow. "We?"

"I'm going to go check on Jack," Daniel said quickly, ducking through the curtain before they could say another word.

Janet and Sam shared a look before they both started laughing.

After a few seconds, Sam leaned in and planted a quick kiss on Janet's lips. "Get some rest," she said, pushing herself to her feet. "I'll be back in the morning."

Janet raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to follow your own advice?" she asked. "Or are you going to try convince Daniel to tell you what he meant by 'we'?"

"I'll get some rest," Sam said with a slight smile. "And I know better than to try convincing Daniel to spill. He can really keep a secret when he wants to."

Janet just raised an eyebrow.

Sam grinned. "I think I'll give Teal'c a try this time."


End file.
